Fochabers

Fochabers
Scottish Gaelic: Fothabair

Fochabers village, beside the River Spey
Fochabers
 Fochabers shown within Moray
Population 1,728 (2011 census)
OS grid referenceNJ345585
Council areaMoray
Lieutenancy areaMoray
CountryScotland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post town Fochabers
Postcode district IV32
Dialling code 01343
Police Scottish
Fire Scottish
Ambulance Scottish
EU Parliament Scotland
UK ParliamentMoray
Scottish ParliamentMoray
List of places
UK
Scotland

Coordinates: 57°36′43″N 3°05′49″W / 57.612°N 3.097°W / 57.612; -3.097

Fochabers (/ˈfɒxəbərz/; Scottish Gaelic: Fachabair or Fothabair) is a village in the Parish of Bellie, in Moray, Scotland, 10 miles (16 km) east of the cathedral city of Elgin and located on the east bank of the River Spey. 1,728 people live in the village, which enjoys a rich musical and cultural history. The village is also home to Baxters,[1] the family-run manufacturer of foodstuffs.

Its name may be from Gaelic 'feith' meaning a bog and 'aber' meaning 'river-mouth'.

The village owes its existence to Alexander Gordon, 4th Duke of Gordon (1743–1827). During the late 18th century, during the Scottish Enlightenment, it was fashionable for landowners to found new towns and villages, and these can be found all over Scotland because unlike their predecessors they all have straight, wide streets in mainly rectangular layouts, a central square, and the houses built with their main elevations parallel to the street. The tenants benefited from more spacious homes, and the Duke, it has to be said, benefited from not having the hoi polloi living in hovels right on the doorstep of Gordon Castle. Fochabers was founded in 1776, and is one of the best examples of a planned village. It is a conservation area, with most of the buildings in the High Street listed as being of historical or architectural interest.

For nearly three decades, the people of Fochabers campaigned for a bypass, as the village is situated on the A96, the only direct route from Aberdeen to Inverness, and consequently suffers from serious traffic problems. Construction work on a bypass for Fochabers and the neighbouring village of Mosstodloch started on 2 February 2010 and completed in January 2012, at a cost of £31.5m.[2] The project was significantly delayed due to conflict regarding the proposed route, and discovery of a Neolithic settlement on the site of the bypass.

Education

There are two schools in Fochabers, Milne's Primary School (formerly Milne's Institution) and Milne's High School, which currently serves approximately 600 pupils from Fochabers itself and the surrounding villages. Milne's Institution was originally built in accordance with Alexander Milne's Last Will and Testament, using money ($100,000) he left for this purpose.

Notable Fochaberians

References

  1. "About Baxters: History". Baxters Food Group. Retrieved 25 April 2011.
  2. "Fochabers bypass work gets under way". BBC News. 2 February 2010. Retrieved 25 April 2011.

External links

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